2023-12-31-accounts

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The Harwich Festival

Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December 2023

THE HARWICH FESTIVAL

1.	REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES
4.	REPORT OF THE INDEPENDENT EXAMINER
5.	RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNT
6.	STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES

THE HARWICH FESTIVAL

TRUSTEES REPORT

The Trustees present their annual report and the unaudited financial statements of the charity for the period year ended 31 December 2023.

Reference and Administrative Details

Registered Charity Name: The Harwich Festival Registered Number: 1171712 Registered Office: 8 St Georges Avenue Dovercourt Essex CO12 3RR

The Trustees

The Trustees who served the charity during the period were as follows:

K A Ririe (Chair) P J Davis (Artistic Director) D E J Burrell R-R Kevlin Dr J M Shaw (Treasurer) S Taplin I Morath

General Manager Mr C Berwick

Structure, Governance and Management

Governing Document

The Harwich Festival is a registered charitable incorporated organisation - foundation governed by its constitution.

Recruitment and Appointment of Trustees

The Governing Document requires a minimum of 3 trustees but there is no upper number of trustees who can be appointed. Trustees are elected from the local community or due to their relevant experience. The Trustees elect various board appointments from among the Trustees. A separate process agreed by the Trustee Board is followed for the election of the Chair. No other persons or b odies external to the charity were entitled to appoint persons to the Trustee Board.

Organisational Structure

The Harwich Festival is governed by a Board of Trustees which is responsible for setting the strategic direction of the organisation and for the policies adopted by the charity. The Trustees carry ultimate responsibility for the conduct of the charity and for ensuring that it satisfies its legal and contractual obligations. Two Trustees meet on a regular basis with the charity's management committee but delegates day to day administration of the charity to its General Manager. The General Manager manages one employee on a flexible contract as well as freelance employees, as required.

Major Risks

The most significant external risk is that of the loss of funding. The effects of this have been minimalised by the procedures that are in place, which has resulted in funding being secured from a variety of sources. The Charity continues to seek to diversify its sources of funding. Internal risks are minimalised by the implementation of procedures for the authorisation of all transactions and projects, and to ensure consistent quality of delivery for all operational aspects of the Charity.

THE HARWICH FESTIVAL

TRUSTEES REPORT (continued)

Aims and Objectives

The aims and objectives of the charity are set out in the Trust documents which specifies that the Harwich Festival seeks to:

Promote the Arts in Harwich and the surrounding area by establishing The Harwich Festival as a regional Arts Hub that provides a diverse range of cultural activities, addressing the needs of all sectors of the community.
Promote the development of the annual Harwich Festival of the Arts in terms of audience growth (overall numbers, age and geographical spread) and diversity of programme;
Promote cultural events throughout the year which are located in venues that ensure full engagement with the community;
Advance culture and the Arts within Harwich and the surrounding area through The Harwich Festival of the Arts and the Harwich Arts and Heritage Centre (HAHC) acting as an ‘umbrella’ for existing and new local events;
Encourage, commission and present new works from all aspects of the Arts;
Promote, in partnership with other local agencies, the regeneration of Harwich and Dovercourt by boosting visitor numbers to the area, raising the profile of the area as a destination, and offering employment opportunities in administration, design and performance;
Procure services from local suppliers whenever appropriate, and offer opportunities to “grass root” local artists, musicians and performers;
Consult with the local community on a regular basis to ensure that its Art based needs are being catered for.

Funding

The Harwich Festival would like to thank all the organisations who have provided funding and support during this period.

The charity's main funding was received from:

Arts Council England National Heritage Lottery Fund Harwich Town Council Tendring District Council The Co-op (administered by the Essex Community Foundation) Essex County Council

Other income comes from the ticket sales, patronage and income from Friends of the HF, gifts from individuals and hire fees from the Harwich Arts and Heritage Centre.

Strategies and Achievements

The Harwich Festival continues to operate as a professional, all-year round Arts organisation. The impact of Covid-19 still impacted on overall trading and income, exacerbated by the on-going cost of living crisis. Staff hours have now returned to the pre-pandemic level.

The summer Festival of the Arts reverted to its traditional pre-pandemic structure where events were spaced out over ten days and hosting over 30 events. Some concerts were, as in previous years, funded in part by a grant from Harwich Town Council.

Regular activities and users of the Harwich Arts and Heritage Centre include:

Dovercourt Ukulele Club CC Dance Studios Craft Café Harwich Sing Tendring Voices Dovercourt Art Club Harwich & Dovercourt Camera Club Harwich Embroidery and Related Textiles (Heart) Group Meditation & Yoga Group Writing Group

THE HARWICH FESTIVAL

TRUSTEES REPORT (continued)

Strategies and Achievements (continued)

The HAHC remains a registered Warm Space, open from 10am to 4pm weekdays and every other Saturday morning. These are the times when the varying exhibitions are open to the public. Hot drinks are provided from the HAHC cafe. Separate craft session s are provided for Mayflower Primary School parents from 1 to 3pm on Tuesdays. The HAHC Warm Space was awarded £24,000 by the National Lottery Fund.

The partnership with the Active Wellbeing Society, who promote Essex Pedal Power, has been initiated and continued throughout 2023.

The Harwich Festival’s five-year lease with Essex County Council for the Harwich Arts and Heritage Centre were concluded in September 2023, with the lease extended until 1st September 2024. The Harwich Festival has started discussions with the building’s owners so as to obtain a further extension of the lease. On renewal on 1st September 2023, the Harwich Festival expanded into the space vacated by the ACL Pre-school and Hairdressing Salon on the first floor.

Trustees' Responsibilities Statement

The Trustees are responsible for preparing the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and regulations. In preparing these financial statements, the trustees are required to:-

Select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;
Observe the methods and principles of the SORP;
Make judgements and accounting estimates that are reasonable and prudent; and
Prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is appropriate to presume that the charity will continue in operation.

The Trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the charity’s transactions and disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charity. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charity and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

Kerith Ririe Chair of the Trustees

Date: 01/10/2024

THE HARWICH FESTIVAL

INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT

Independent Examiner's Report to the Trustees of The Harwich Festival

I report on the accounts of The Harwich Festival for the year ended 31 December 2023, which comprise the Receipts and Payments Account and the Statement of Assets and Liabilities.

Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner

The charity's trustees are responsible for the preparation of the accounts. The charity's trustees consider that an audit is not required for this year (under Section144(2) of the Charities Act 2011 (the 2011 Act) and that an independent examination is needed.

It is my responsibility to:

examine the accounts under section 145 of the 2011 Act;

to follow the Directions given by the Charity Commission under Section 145(5)(b) of the 2011 Act; and

to state whether particular matters have come to my attention.

Basis of independent examiner's report

My examination was carried out in accordance with the general Directions given by the Charity Commission. An examination includes a review of the accounting records kept by the charity and a comparison of the accounts presented with those records. It also includes consideration of any unusual items or disclosures in the accounts, and seeking explanations from the trustees concerning any such matters. The procedures undertaken do not provide all the evidence that would be required in an audit and consequently no opinion is given as to whether the accounts present a "true and fair view" and the report is limited to those matters set out in the statement below:

Independent examiner's statement

In the course of my examination, no material matters have come to my attention which give me cause to be believe that in, any material respect:

the accounting records were not kept in accordance with Section 130 of the 2011 Act; or
the accounts did not accord with the accounting records; or
the accounts did not comply with the applicable requirements concerning the form and content of accounts set out in the Charities (Accounts and Re-ports) Regulations 2008 other than any requirement that the accounts give a "true and fair" view which is not a matter considered as part of an independent examination.

I have no concerns and have come across no other matters in connection with the examination to which attention should be drawn in this report in order to enable a proper understanding of the accounts to be reached.

P J T Frost Chartered Certified Accountant JTF 195 Main Road Dovercourt Harwich Essex CO12 3PH

Date

THE HARWICH FESTIVAL

RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2023

Unrestricted income funds £ - 987 - - 1,800 4,500 825 - - 991 760.00 15 - - - - 1,409 619 338 122 93 14,906 6,646 - 369 12,	Restricted income funds £ - - 3,300 - - - - 523 - - - - - - 500 - - - - - - - - 112 -	*31/12/2022* £ 5,274 - 3,480 4,206 - - - 893 15,500 - - 12 940 3,545 4,340 15,776 3,359 - 728 155 311 10,427 6,651 - -
46,380 46,132	4,435 4,435	75,597 101,208

248 -	- -	(25,611) -
248 19,368	- -	(25,611) 44,979
19,616	-	19,368

THE HARWICH FESTIVAL

STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES AS AT 31 DECEMBER 2023

	Unrestricted	Restricted
	funds	funds	Total	*31/12/2022*
	£	£	£
Fixed Assets
Piano	-	-	-	-
Portable Staging	-	-	-	-
Laptop	-	-	-	-
	-	-	-	-
Current Assets
Cash funds
Cash at bank	19,616	-	19,616	18,983
Petty cash	-	-	-	16
HBO cash at bank	-	-	-	369
	19,616	-	19,616	19,368

Approved by the Board of Trustees on Date: 01/10/2024

K Ririe J M Shaw Trustee Trustee

OpenCharities

The Harwich Festival

THE HARWICH FESTIVAL

CONTENTS

TRUSTEES REPORT

Reference and Administrative Details

The Trustees

The Trustees who served the charity during the period were as follows:

Structure, Governance and Management

Governing Document

Recruitment and Appointment of Trustees

Organisational Structure

Major Risks

TRUSTEES REPORT (continued)

Aims and Objectives

Funding

Strategies and Achievements

TRUSTEES REPORT (continued)

Strategies and Achievements (continued)

Trustees' Responsibilities Statement

Independent Examiner's Report to the Trustees of The Harwich Festival

Respective responsibilities of trustees and examiner

Basis of independent examiner's report

Independent examiner's statement

STATEMENT OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES AS AT 31 DECEMBER 2023